When behind the mirror of the camera obscura, there are lively eyes that think ~ José Bergamín

The Instituto Cervantes, New Delhi, opened its doors on October 11 to the largest exhibition ever on one of the greatest names of 20th century Spanish photography: José Suárez. He was an innovative artist who incorporated the European avant-garde movements, an intellectual friend of prominent writers and a committed creator who lived in exile for more than two decades.

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After opening in Santiago de Compostela in November 2015, the exhibition has subsequently traveled to Madrid, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Paris, Tokyo, and then New Delhi. Comprising 135 photographs, 111 documents and publications, seven audio-visual montages and more, the exhibition gives an insight into the evolution of the art form of photography.

Suárez ‘s images have very defined characteristics, the result of a reflexive and very personal vision that was determined by his rich cultural knowledge. His brother Paco recalls that Suárez’s camera was like a part of his anatomy, stating, “On the few occasions that I saw him, without his camera, it seemed as if a part of his body was missing.”

The exhibition presents several audiovisual montages (on plasma screens and tablets) and a series of portraits of intellectuals and artists whom he met throughout his life. This exhibition is organised chronologically, following Suárez’s three vital stages. The first, titled The 30’s, takes place between 1930 and 1936 and contains three sections: In the land of Salamanca (where he studies law, acquires a solid formation and relates to prominent intellectuals), Galicia 30s and Mariñeiros.

During this period, he created an ethnographic series, with great attention to detail, on the Galician peasant society and the world of the sea. This work, like the one carried out during the previous decade by the North American photographer Ruth Matilda Anderson, constitutes a valuable approach to visual heritage, with the difference that Anderson’s view is that of an anthropologist, while Suárez’s response that of a photographer, with a strong aesthetic concern.

The second stage, Exile, starts in 1936, when he leaves Spain due to the Civil War. He first installs himself in Argentina and then in Punta del Este (Uruguay); travels throughout Latin America (also by Brazil) and even lives two years in Japan (1953-54) in search of a new spirituality. His works from this stage are shared in the sections Snow on the Mountain Range (The Andes), South America and Japan.

The third and final stage, Return, begins in 1959, when Suárez returns to Spain. He photographs La Mancha, on which he said, “I went in search of Don Quixote but found only Sancho Panzas” and discovered the same misery he had left behind when leaving Spain. He then makes his second trip to Japan, where he meets Akira Kurosawa during the filming of The Bad Sleep Well, and travels throughout Europe as a correspondent for the Argentine newspaper La Prensa. This trajectory is reflected in the sections La Mancha: the route of Don Quixote, Toros, Glyndebourne (Great Britain), Mediterranean and Galicia in the 1960s.

The exhibition, an intriguing and ethereal journey of the artist and his work, is on display at the Instituto Cervantesfrom 11 October till 10 December (Tuesday-Friday 6 pm to 8 pm and Sat-Sun 11 am to 8 pm)